When you see our crews working along power lines, you might think we’re just clearing branches from our right-of-way. While that’s part of our mission, we’re taking an even more proactive approach to protect your reliable electric service and your wallet.
Right-of-Way Vegetation Management
Our right-of-way extends 50 feet on each side of our transmission lines and 15 feet on each side of our distribution lines. This provides enough space for utility vehicles to work safely. As part of receiving electric service, members grant Piedmont Electric easement rights to clear, maintain and repair these areas as needed to keep the system running smoothly. Visit our Vegetation Management page to learn more.
Dead Trees: A Hidden Threat
What you may not know is that our vegetation management team isn’t just focused on branches near power lines. We’re also identifying and removing dead trees outside our standard right-of-way that could fall and cause outages. Though we always prefer to preserve trees when possible, dead trees pose a significant risk to power reliability and public safety. Removing these hazards before they cause problems helps prevent unexpected outages and costly emergency repairs.
Smart Solutions, Better Service
Some members ask why we don’t simply bury all our power lines underground. While underground lines can be attractive, they come at a steep price – typically 4 to 5 times more expensive than overhead lines. Our strategic tree management program delivers reliable service at a fraction of the cost of underground installation.
Report Dead Trees
We don’t want to cut live, healthy trees outside of our right-of-way, but if you see a dead tree that is tall enough to hit a line, please contact our office at 800.222.3107 or through info@pemc.coop or by clicking the button below. Our staff will come out and examine the tree and if we determine it is a threat to the powerlines then we will cut it down at not expense to the member. However, we will not haul away the tree.
Report the condition and location of the tree along with your contact information. Attach photo(s) if necessary.